Early YMCA work in Indonesia began around 1928 under the direction of
John R. Mott, as well as Dutch and German members of the YMCA. During this
time, the YMCA worked on a small number of specific projects primarily for
Dutch citizens. An effort was made to establish an official YMCA movement in
1946 to provide services for Dutch residents, especially members of the Dutch
military who were fighting a war against Indonesian nationalists for control of
the archipelago. The largely Dutch YMCA (known as the AMVJ) operated several
large, well-equipped centers throughout the country.

Following Indonesian independence in late 1949, the AMVJ
administrators left a board of directors composed of four Dutchmen and five
Indonesians to continue the movement. The AMVJ changed its name to become the
YMCA of Indonesia, and a national committee with membership in the World
Alliance was formed in 1951. Alexander Rotti, an Indonesian pastor and member
of Parliament, was selected to serve as general secretary. At Rotti's request,
fraternal secretary Karl H. Stange was sent to Jakarta (referred to at that
time as Djakarta) in 1954.

Although the AMVJ had transferred control of its ten branches to the
YMCA in 1949, the new Indonesian government was suspicious of lingering Dutch
influence and seized the former AMVJ centers, arguing that they were military
possessions of the former colonial power. However, the YMCA regained use of
most of these facilities following litigation, and by 1956, the YMCA had made
developments on all ten of its facilities. In 1953, a young Indian named C. A.
Itty, who had been working for the Student Christian Movement in Indonesia, was
appointed as a secretary. Itty was credited as instrumental for his ability to
attract young people to the YMCA, which was quickly growing in popularity
throughout the country.

The YMCA's early programs included traditional athletic activities,
recreation groups, and physical and spiritual education. Karl H. Stange also
worked to develop native leadership by hosting a leaders' training course,
publishing literature, and offering workshops for volunteers. The YMCA also
operated an orphanage and established a conference center to be used by the
YMCA, churches, and schools in the city of Sukabumi in 1955. Notably, the YMCA
began to operate a school in Djakarta in 1956, an idea that would be replicated
by other YMCA

Despite its early growth, the YMCA of Indonesia experienced a period
of decline during the 1960s. Issues of nationalism led to conflicts among the
YMCA's leadership, and young leaders were forced to fill the void left by
departing senior administrators like Alexander Rotti. Furthermore, the YMCA of
Indonesia suffered from a lack of inter-movement support during this period
partly due to increased communist influence in the country. By 1967, only five
associations were actively operating in Indonesia, and the YMCA was forced to
close a holiday center and numerous hostels, which had been a significant
source of revenue.

Nevertheless, the YMCA continued to work throughout Indonesia. In
addition to its programs of athletics, education and outdoor recreation, the
YMCA also began to support family planning and medical programs, vocational
training, reforestation work, and rural development work in Indonesian
villages. The YMCA's schools continued to be a major focus of the movement; by
1980, YMCA schools served over 2,700 students ranging from kindergarteners to
secondary school students.

The following is a list of individuals who served as YMCA secretaries
in Indonesia, along with their dates of service, if known:

Chappel, Danielle (1977-1979)

Sloan, Lynne (1977-1979)

Garber, Kim (1980-1982)

Sloan, Malcolm D. (1977-1979)

Kazmiroff, Boris M. (1973-1975)

Summers, Karen Lynn (1982)

Moyse, Lawrence (1972)

Stange, Karl Henry (1953-1962)

Sloan, M. Daniel (1977-1979)

Storm, Carolyn (1980)

[Historical information largely adapted from the collection, as well
as from World Service: A History of the Foreign Work and
World Service of the Young Men's Christian Associations of the United States
and Canada (New York: Association Press, 1957) by Kenneth LaTourette.
Additional information was obtained online from YMCA International:
http://www.ymca.int/where-we-work/ymcas-country-profile/asia-pacific/indonesia/
]

The collection includes documents and records from the YMCAs of
Indonesia, dating from 1947 to 1984. The majority of the material concerns the
YMCA headquarters in Djakarta (Jakarta), however associations in the cities of
Surabaya, Bandung, and Malang are also well represented in the collection.

The majority of the collection is composed of correspondence and
reports written by fraternal secretaries in Indonesia and members of the
World's Alliance and the International Committee. The reports cover topics
including leadership training, YMCA buildings and residences, program proposals
and evaluations, annual reports, work with US nonprofit organizations, as well
as political and religious conditions in Indonesia. Financial records,
newspaper articles, publications, and the first Constitution of the YMCA of
Indonesia are also included in the collection.

This collection is protected by the Copyright Law of the United States
(Title 17, U.S. Code). It is the user's responsibility to verify copyright,
ownership, and to obtain all the necessary permissions prior to the
reproduction, publication, or other use of any portion of these materials.

Preferred Citation:

[Indicate the cited item and/or series
here]. Records of YMCA International Work in Indonesia. Kautz Family
YMCA Archives. University of Minnesota.

See the Chicago Manual of Style for additional
examples.

Processing Information:

Processed as part of Fast Processing Project II, April 2009, as
collection FP033. Material has been minimally processed. Folder descriptions
may be general and material has not been grouped into series.

Biographical information on many of the secretaries involved in
Indonesian work (see list of individuals in the historical note) is available
in the YMCA Biographical Files, separately cataloged in the Kautz Family YMCA
Archives.

The papers of Karl Stange are separately cataloged in the Kautz Family
YMCA Archives.

This collection is indexed under the following headings in the catalog
of the University of Minnesota Libraries. Researchers desiring materials about
related topics, persons or places should search the catalog using these
headings.

Topics:

Young Men's
Christian associations -- Administration.

Young Men's
Christian associations -- Buildings.

Young Men's
Christian associations -- Indonesia.

Places:

Indonesia.

Jakarta (Indonesia).

Persons:

Stange, Karl.

Organizations:

International Committee of YMCAs. World Service.

National Board of the Young Men's Christian Associations.
International Division.

E-mail questions or comments to: ymcaarch@umn.eduURL:
http://special.lib.umn.edu/findaid/html/ymca/yusa0009x2x46.phtml |Last revised:
February 26, 2013
Please credit the Kautz Family YMCA Archives, University of Minnesota Libraries
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